Woody Allen: Fashion icon?

A couple questions about Woody Allen’s $10 million lawsuit against American Apparel, which put up billboards in Los Angeles and New York last year that pictured Allen (without his permission, he claims) as a Hasidic Jew (in a still from Annie Hall) and included a Yiddish caption reading “Der Heiliker Rebbe” (“The Holy Rabbi”). First, how is this image of the septuagenarian art-film director, captioned in an alphabet and a language that few can read, supposed to sell clothes to hipsters? That makes about as much sense as having William S. Burroughs do Nike ads. (Oh, wait…) Second. Allen’s lawsuit states that he doesn’t do commercial endorsements in the U.S. — what about elsewhere? He’s written and directed a series of ads for an Italian grocery chain. And he used to do commercial endorsements in the U.S., as evidenced by this 1967 magazine ad for clip-on sunglasses.

If any of you PopWatchers can find clips or stills of other ads featuring Allen, send us links in the comments section below. We promise that more people will check them out than saw Cassandra’s Dream.

sponsored stories

Get the latest TV news fromEntertainment Weekly

Please Enter a Valid Email AddressPlease Enter a Valid ZIP Address

Thanks for signing up for our newsletter!Check your email to verify your signup.